The Taste of Tears
by HazelKnut
Summary: This is about a character I made up, her name is Karen Melanie Malfoy. She is Draco Malfoy's twin sister, but is nothing like the Malfoy family. She falls for Harry, but couldn't leave her brother, either. It's all about the drama! Hope you like it!
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

_Dear Karen,_

_It's going to be a pleasure having you attending Hogwarts. When I heard the news, I nearly jumped out my skin! I never thought Father would agree to this, but I'm so glad he did. With your witchcraft in the classes, you'll be able to excel! _

_So begin to pack your bags because the big day will come sooner than you think!_

_Love,_

_Draco, your dearest brother_

Karen Melanie Malfoy carefully traced her brother's name with the tip of her pale finger. She had always loved the look of Draco's writing. It curled and curved in the most elegant way. She remembered when she was little she had bugged the poor boy in spending all his free time teaching her how to write like that. And at night, she would practice with a flashlight under her sheets so her mother wouldn't realize she hadn't gone to sleep yet. Even though the determined girl tried so hard her fingers would be sore in the morning, her lettering would not be nearly as beautiful. Karen smiled at the thought. Somehow, the appearance of this mere ink scratch could bring her so much comfort. It had been so long since she had last seen her brother.

FLASHBACK

"Daddy, may I please go say good-bye to Draco?" an 11 year-old girl with dark auburn asked sheepishly. It was amazing how a girl almost 12 would act so shy and anxious in front of her own father.

"I am not your Daddy, Karen," a man replied in a tone that could bring chills down anyone's back, his sliver eyes narrowed and boring into the already frightened girl, "You should remember that by now. It is Mr. Malfoy. That is my name."

"But..." a hurt expression embraced the young girl's pretty features.

"I do not have a daughter like you. You are just a useless slave girl we hired to keep the fire burning…"

"That's not true!" the girl suddenly screamed.

Without a farther word, the man slapped her across the face. Then turned around to leave, leaving the girl in tears.

FLASHBACK ENDED

The same girl with the same dark auburn hair and the same cloudy blue eyes touched her left cheek as if it had been burnt. _'That was where he slapped me,'_ she whispered to herself, her voice crackled as if she was going to cry, _'It still hurts.'_ Her eyes immediately squeezed shut as they began to blur with unwanted tears. Her father was right. She was useless. She was weak and unintelligent. She didn't belong in the Malfoy family at all. Even her appearance didn't match the rest of her family. They all had silky blonde hair that stay straight at anytime, whereas her own which was wild and abnormal looking.

FLASHBACK

"Luscious, we need to something about Karen's hair," a woman with a wrinkled up nose announced. Her voice tainted with disgust, as if her own daughter's hairstyle was a disgrace.

"We can cut it short and bleach it blonde," her husband suggested.

"No," the woman said, "No girl in this family has short hair."

"Well, you have to admit, this crazy red clown hat she has on her head doesn't exactly cut it either."

"I know! That's why I want to change it."

"Do whatever you like with her. Nothing can be worse than this mess."

"But we need to discuss this thoroughly. Her appearance means a lot to the posture of the name Malfoy."

"She is the one cursed with this problem. Why do we have to worry about it?"

"Because she is our daughter."

"She doesn't look like us at all. Why don't we just throw her away into some orphanage?"

"No, she is our daughter and Draco's twin sister! The Malfoy blood runs through her veins!"

"Well let's cut it and be done with it all."

There was a pause.

A cough was heard from the nearby couch. The couple had obviously so caught up in their conversation to realize that their daughter was awake and could not help but hearing every word they had spit out of their foul mouths.

FLASHBACK ENDED

Her father had suggested killing his own daughter. It was true. Karen had heard every single symbol with her own two ears, though she would give anything to not have heard it at all. She was a waste of their precious time. They should have just killed her from the moment they saw her, rather than murdering her then or now, it would have hurt less. She remembered her younger self sprinting up the stairs, wanting nothing more but to get away. Her parents could only stare as she stormed away with fright and anger. It was then that the young Karen ran to her brother, for the first time. Actually he was the only person in the Malfoy family she could have gone to at that moment. Her brother held her tight. He never knew what happened, but he was there for her. He wrapped his strong arms around the quivering girl and told her again and again that it was all okay. Karen felt strong, as if she was not a scared little kid, not anymore. She believed that no one could harm her if she was in her brother's arms. And that feeling felt great, no, more than just great, it felt wonderful. It was a feeling no one could put a price on, the feeling of never wanting to let go.

FLASHBACK

"Draco, why do you have to go?" the 11-year-old Karen asked the night before her brother left for Hogwarts.

"I'm going to a school, you know, where you learn stuff," he explained gently.

"Then, why don't you come back after each day? I've seen Muggle children do that," I asked, pouting, "I don't want you to leave me for a whole year!"

"It's a special school, Karen," Draco said, annoyed with his sister's attitude. She was a big girl now. She should be able to handle herself.

"I know, but…" the auburn haired Malfoy looked down at her feet. She was not sure if she should tell her brother about the night where her father threatened to kill her. She knew she couldn't be all alone with her parents. They would treat her like dirt and she would have no one to talk to.

"Karen, I love you and I would never hurt you," Draco said, suddenly sounding serious, "But I have to go to this school, or I may never by a Malfoy."

At that statement, Karen knew she had to let go. She wasn't a Malfoy, but she couldn't drag her brother along with her as well. She knew what it felt like to be excluded. So she never wanted her dear brother to feel the same way as her.

"You're right, Draco," Karen smiled weakly, though her voice was soaked with sorrow.

But her brother was too excited to notice. He smiled back and pulled the girl into a tight embrace. Karen allowed herself to sink into his arms for one last time. She had memorized the exact smell of his shampoo, the exact facial expression he wore and the exact feeling of his heart thumping against hers, in a soft, tender rhythm. And to Karen, it sounded like the sweetest music she had ever heard.

FLASHBACK ENDED

**A/N: So what do ya'll think? This is my first Harry Potter fanfic, so send me some reviews plzz D!**


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

An anxious girl edged her way through the crowd of people at the train station. It was her first time going to Hogwarts and she had no idea where to aboard the train. Her knuckles were white from squeezing the handle bar of her trolley so hard. She kept on muttering to herself, saying that it was all right. But she was actually starting to doubt this idea. Maybe she just didn't belong here after all.

"Hey, Karen, over here!" a voice woke her from her thoughts. The auburn hair snapped around and saw a sleek blonde waving at her.

"Draco!" she gasped and ran to the waiting 17-year-old boy.

She threw her arms around him and gave him the biggest bear hug ever. Her slim arms wrapped around her brother's neck and pressed her body against his, wanting to feel the comforting warmth radiant from his body tightly embrace her.

"Karen! Stop, stop!" Draco choked out and Karen released her brother from her hug, but only standing a few inches in front of him.

She stood still as Draco examined her from head to toe. He grinned. If she wasn't his sister, he would ask her out right then and there. The girl looked stunning even though she was just in jeans and a white T-shirt. Her beautiful long red hair had natural soft curls teasing the ends and ended a good length just above her waist line, her intelligent aqua pupils twinkling with joy and happiness, and her cherry red lips were curled into a cute smile. Karen was nearly as tall of Draco himself and her body had curves in all the right places.

"You're certainly not the little girl I known," Draco winked at his sister.

Karen giggled whole-heartedly. "It had been so long, Draco," she said.

"Yeah…" he replied, suddenly sounding grave.

Karen looked right into his gray eyes. They were hard and icy. _'He had changed so much as well,' _Karen observed.

"Hey, Draco, who's the hot babe you got there?" a dark haired boy asked as he walked towards them.

"Erm…" Draco said, "She's my girlfriend." Karen frowned as his brother wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her towards him firmly.

"I never seen her here, is she new?" the dark haired boy questioned.

"Yeah, just got transferred," Draco lied calmly, "Karen, this is Blaise Zabini. Blaise, this is Karen McBride."

"It's a pleasure," Zabini took Karen's hand and kissed it as he bowed deeply. The girl still had a dumbfounded look on her face.

"Blaise, why don't you go get a compartment while Karen and I have some alone time together?" Draco suggested as he winked at the last statement.

"Of course," Zabini grinned slightly before giving another bow and disappearing out of sight.

After he was completely out of ear shot, Karen snapped, "What the hell was that about?" her eyes were locked onto his brothers to make sure he'd give her a decent answer.

"Karen, sweetie, I'm sorry," Draco replied, trying to sound tender, "But Father requested me to not revel your true identity."

"The teachers would know the moment they see my last name," Karen argued.

"No, they wouldn't," Draco said, "Father has some close _friends_ at the Ministry. So your last name now is McBride."

"I don't want a stupid name such as that!" Karen screamed. Her heart immediately shattered. She had thought her father had finally come to his senses and would put his daughter out in the open, but she was wrong.

"You have to deal with it Karen," Draco said firmly, "I know how much this hurts, but…"

"No! You don't know how much this hurts!" Karen screamed as she shook her head violently, "You are always Father's pride and joy! You have no idea how it feels to be an outcast, to be treated like dirt…!"

Suddenly, her brother slapped her across the face, hard. The taste of blood filled her mouth as her head snapped to the side. Tears immediately followed the pain. She had never thought her brother would do something as harsh to her as this. She had always thought her brother was on her side, but she was wrong, again.

"Somebody could have heard you, you little bitch!" Draco snapped hotly. His voice in an accusing tone as if it was her fault she had a mouth she could use to talk back. Karen was shocked he didn't notice her tears at all.

Karen ran. She had to get away. Her brother was mad. Her beloved brother had turned into a monster just like her father. _'I can't believe it!'_ Karen's head was screaming, _'I thought he loved me! I thought he loved me for me! But he betrayed me… No, no, no!' _The broken girl ran blindly through the sea of ordinary people, feeling like she was the only one there, all alone, with no one to go to. Suddenly she collapsed and crashed head first into someone's chest. Karen raised her head and rubbed her eyes she could see clearly. Under her was a boy with very unruly raven-black hair and a pair of gorgeous emerald eyes. He also wore a silly grin. Karen wondered why he would still be smiling when a random girl just crashed into him.

"Hey there," he grinned.

Karen's face immediately flushed bright red. "I'm so sorry!"

She tried to get up, but realized that the boy's strong arm was wrapped around her waist, pinning her to him. With the other hand, he reached up to her face and smeared away all the tears. "Why were you crying?" he asked tenderly.

"It's nothing," Karen said, "Can I please…"

"Kiss me? Of course you can," the boy grinned as puckered his lips and closed his eyes.

"Erm… no…" Karen replied. Then giggled as she saw how ridiculous the boy looked.

"What's so funny?" he asked with a dumb look on his face.

Karen doubled over in laughing as she rolled off his chest.

"Erm…" he poked the girl slightly as she was rolling all over the cement ground.

"Y…you…" Karen gasped as she ended her fit of laughter.

"All right…" the raven haired boy looked at her as if she was some kind of freak.

"Sorry," Karen apologized as she got up on her knees while the boy was still sitting on his bottom, "So what's your name?"

"Harry Potter," the boy answered.

Suddenly Karen started laughing once again. Harry only sat there and watched her hold her stomach and squirming in pain while still having a huge smile on her face. When she was finally in control again, she said up and asked, "No, really, what's your name?"

"Harry Potter," Harry said again.

Karen giggled, "I know you're trying to be funny, but are you telling me that _you_ are the Harry Potter who almost killed the Dark Lord when he was a baby?"

"The one and only," Harry grinned and brushed away his hair, revealing a lightning shaped scar.

Karen gasped in surprise. "Bloody hell…" she muttered under her breathe. "I got to go," Karen said quickly as she almost jumped and turned to leave.

"Hold on," Harry said as he grabbed her arm, "At least tell me your name before you leave."

"It's Karen Mal… I mean, McBride," Karen said quickly.

"Well, it was nice meeting you, Karen McBride," Harry smiled as he released the girl and gave her a salute.

Karen smiled back. It was a fake smile, but he never noticed.


	3. Chapter 3

Karen sat alone in an empty compartment. She pressed her face onto the icy glass window and tried to clear her head. So far, it wasn't working. In the past hour, she got a new identity, met the only person who withstood himself against the Dark Lord and got beaten up with her own brother, _how exciting_.

Suddenly, the door slid open and a misty eyed girl walked in with an awkward boy. They were holding hands. Karen raised an eyebrow.

"Wait, there's someone here Luna," the boy said, glancing nervously at Karen and tucking at his hand.

The girl giggled, her hand still firmly grasping his. "I know that, Neville, I'm not blind."

"Excuse me?" Karen said.

"Oh, hello there, we were just looking for a compartment, you wouldn't mind sharing, would you?" Luna said airily, flipping her blonde hair over her shoulder.

"No… I suppose not…"

The girl skipped inside and plopped herself down on the opposite bench of Karen. The boy was dragged along.

"So, what is your name? I never seen you around before," the girl pepped.

"Karen, uh, McBride," Karen answered, still weary of her new last name, "And I'm new here."

"Oh goody!" Luna clapped her hands, "I love new people! My name is Luna Lovegood. And this here is my boyfriend, Neville Longbottom."

Neville immediately blushed deep red and muttered something Karen didn't catch.

Luna cupped her ear and chirped, "What's that darling? You're not my boyfriend? Oh, of course you are! Last time I checked, your hands were all over me! I only let my _boyfriends _do that!"

Karen even blushed a little at the comment and Neville looked like he was about to jump off the train.

"Neville's in Gryffindor and I'm in Ravenclaw, what house are you in?" Luna continued.

"Uh, I'm not sure yet," Karen said.

"Oh right! You're new! Ah, how stupid of me, expecting that they would just include the name of your house in the welcome mail. Of course, only the Sorting Hat could make the right decision. And he will need to look directly in your brain, even though they could perhaps send a ghoul to retrieve it for them, but I guess that would create quite a contradictory."

"Ghouls to retrieve my brain?" Karen frowned.

"Don't mind her," Neville spoke with a roll of his eyes.

_Aw, how cute._

"Shush," Luna said and continued, "Well, there are four houses in Hogwarts, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. We complete for points and the house with the most points wins the House Cup at the end of the year, though with all the trouble You-Know-Who is causing, the House Cup hardly ever matters anymore…"

"Trouble the Dark Lord is causing?" Karen interrupted, immediately curious.

"Well, he's officially alive right now, isn't he? So there is ought to be trouble. And Harry's been running around battling Death Eaters and even You-Know-Who himself. They say that Death Eaters' been gathering…"

"Wait Luna," Neville suddenly said as he raised a shaky finger at Karen, "Y, you called him the Dark Lord."

Karen raised her eyebrows, "So?"

"Then, you, you must be a Death Eater! Only they call him by that name!" Neville retorted, his face horror stricken.

"Oh drop it Neville, everyone has a different way of calling You-Know-Who, I actually think her way is more accurate," Luna said.

"Yeah, after all, he is the greatest dark wizard of all times right?" Karen said with a convincing smile.

It seemed like Neville didn't buy it, because he kept shooting Karen suspicious glares.

"Anyway, you were saying, Luna?" Karen drew her attention back onto the girl who was shifting uncomfortably in her seat.

"Uh, I think Neville and I should, uh, go to see some of our other friends … right Neville?" Luna said.

"Yeah, Luna, let's go," Neville snapped and to everyone's surprise, including himself, he seized up Luna's hand and stood up protectively.

But before they could recover from the shock and leave the compartment, the door slid open and two bodies came charging in. Karen immediately recognized the boy she met from earlier. Beside him stood a tall, skinny red head and a rather bushy haired, pretty witch who was glancing curiously around the room.

"Hey! You're that girl from earlier!" Harry said as he spotted Karen sitting in the corner.

"Yeah…"

"Karen, isn't it? McBride?"

"Um, yeah, that's it."

"I'd like you to meet my two best buds," Harry said cheerfully as he pointed at the girl and boy who were both looking curiously at her, "Hermione Granger and Ronald Weasley."

"Ron, actually," the red head corrected.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," Hermione greeted with a smile and a wave.

"Yeah, same here," Karen replied awkwardly.

She had never been comfortable around so many people, to be honest. It was the first time in a long time that she had anyone who was interested in talking with her. It felt… nice, she concluded.

"You're new here, aren't you?" Ron said.

Karen nodded.

"Congrats! You're going to have tons of fun at Hogwarts!"

"Yeah, I'm looking forward to it," Karen answered with a smile.

"I hope you're up to it," Harry grinned as he plopped himself down on the seat beside Karen, "Because once you're in, there is no way out."

His emerald eyes taunted her, as if daring her to give some sort of signal indicating that she was willing to join their odd little group. She only just met these people, yet she felt a side to her tugging for her to go along with their offer. Karen narrowed her eyes and gave the slightest of nods.

"Metaphorically speaking of course," Harry winked.

A/N : Wow, it's been a long time since I updated. Please send in more reviews! Tell me if I should contiue or not. )


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